An Allegory of Passion by Hans Holbein the Younger

This powerful image was painted by Hans Holbein the Younger (German, 1497/1498 - 1543), known famously as the court painter for England's Henry 8th. Originally created about 1532-1536, this painting name comes from the cartouche below the rider which holds the Italian inscription E cosi desio me mena (And so desire carries me along) taken from Petrarch's Canzoniere, written about 1342. The patron who commissioned the panel was probably a scholar and a humanist familiar with this text.

The Allegory of Passion has a rich history of ownership. On the back of the panel is the monogram HP, which stands for Henry, Prince of Wales, the older brother of Charles I and one of the first serious art collectors in England. Richard Symonds, a British diarist, next mentioned the painting as being seen in the "Closett of the Lady Anne Mary Howard" at Arundel House in London in 1653.

This print is exactingly created in our studio using the finest hot press art paper, then mounted on Baltic birch, and protected with a silky, permanent finish that is as durable as it is beautiful. The sides are 1.5" deep and finished with hand-applied gleaming gold/bronze texture. Size: 12" x 12"